Sunday, August 15, 2010

A Sunday Afternoon Bike Ride

With all that is going on in our lives now as we adjust to a new culture and try to learn their language, sometimes it is nice to put those things on the back burner and just enjoy a bike ride.  While I am still learning about the culture and speaking the language while riding, it is still not a formal setting, just a relaxed bike ride in the tropics.

Small Family Farm

Agriculture is big in our area, although not quite to the same scale we were used to seeing in Colorado.  All farms are prepared, sown, and harvested by hand.  Hopefully I will find some rice paddies soon and get some photos of those.  I have seen them while driving around but I don't know how to get back to them yet on my bicycle.

Bamboo Black and White

Bamboo...They use it for a lot of things here.  It is the world's largest grass species and once it germinates it grows faster than most plants of it's size.  It is growing everywhere.  Brooklyn thinks she will see a Panda  Bear any moment.  We tried to explain that most of them are in China, a long distance away, but she doesn't get it yet.

My Trusty Steed

My old Schwinn.  This bike has been with me for a LONG time and it just keeps going.  This bike has seen almost as much of the world as I have; Canada, most of the Western USA, Mexico, Ecuador, and Indonesia.  Since I didn't have anyone to pose for me in my photo, my bike did the job fine.  There are numerous little trails and paths in our area.  It looks like I will have plenty to explore and see while we are here for the next year.

The Streets of Salatiga

This is what most of the streets look like in our area.  This would be considered a large street.  As we walk along these streets they are lined with people doing various things.  The people here are the nicest we have EVER met in any country.  Their genuine desire to talk with you and look you in the eyes with a smile is really neat.  I cannot wait until I can speak a little better to really engage in some more meaningful conversation than just telling them my name, the name of my wife, how many kids I have, and where I am from.  But, that is more than I could say a week ago!

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